Get our Questions of the Week delivered right to your inbox!

I must point out that every state in the union is different.

The new evangelization calls for followers of Christ who are unconditionally pro-life: who will proclaim, celebrate and serve the Gospel of life in every situation. A sign of hope is the increasing recognition that the dignity of human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who has done great evil. . . . I renew the appeal I made . . . for a consensus to end the death penalty, which is both cruel and unnecessary.—Pope John Paul II Papal Mass, St. Louis, Missouri, January 27, 1999

The examples below should confirm that point.

Women With Small Children.The execution of nursing women is anathema to the rights of the child (until the child is two years old) set forth in the Quran and Sunna, although the woman may be sentenced to death. Saudi Arabia has ratified the Revised Arab Charter on Human Rights (2004), which prohibits execution of nursing women as contrary to the interests of the infant for at least two years after giving birth.

In 1960, there were 56 executions in the USA and 9,140 murders.

Pregnant Women.The execution of pregnant women is anathema to the rights of the child set forth in the Quran and Sunna, although the woman may be sentenced to death. Additionally, Saudi Arabia has ratified the Revised Arab Charter on Human Rights, which prohibits execution of pregnant women as contrary to the interests of the infant.

Comments.Capital Punishment U.K. reports that in 2010, Saudi Arabia executed 26 men for murder, rape or drug-related offenses—a drop in the number of executions and scope of the death penalty compared to the several preceding years.

So the number of murders grew as the number of executions shrank.

Kidnapping Not Resulting in Death. Individuals have been executed for offenses that included kidnapping; it is unclear whether individuals have been executed simply for kidnapping. We did not categorize kidnapping as a separate death eligible offense recognized by any specific law, but it is possible that death sentences were awarded as ta'zir for kidnapping.

The murder rate is now at its lowest level since 1966.

Treason.Treason might carry a hadd death penalty, although the circumstances under which a judicial hadd penalty would traditionally apply might be limited to terrorism-related offenses, or might include holding heterodox opinions--without more information we cannot describe the scope of this offense in Saudi Arabia.

By 1999, it had fallen to 6.1 -- a drop of 60 percent.

Other Offenses Not Resulting in Death.- Assault and Attempted Rape. Individuals have been executed for physical assault and attempted rape; it is unclear how the court justified this decision. - Gang Leadership. A man was executed for leading a gang that committed robberies and dealt drugs.

"Yeah, I shot her," Vera admitted.

Consensual Sexual Relations Between Adults of Same Sex.Judges reportedly treat gay and lesbian sexual relations as zina, applying the penalty of death or lashing according to the circumstances. In Saudi Arabia, the death penalty for homosexual sodomy or lesbianism applies as hadd, depending on proof.

The conclusion is there is a deterrent effect.

Adultery.Zina carries the death penalty as hadd for married persons (and lashing for unmarried persons), under demanding evidentiary showings. Under traditional rules (discussed in the preceding questions and their Comments), execution of a death sentence for adultery might be unlikely.